1. Field of the Invention
The field of the invention is directed to the art of cooking food products and, in particular, to an unique method of preparing a rare roast beef product.
Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 3,262,787 discloses a process of preparing partially cooked, packaged foods, including beef which, having been stitched instramuscularly, with a solution of gelatin, monosodium glutamate and water, is rubbed with salt, pepper, and garlic and then vacuum sealed in a plastic bag prior to immersion in a tank of hot water which is maintained a 160.degree.F. for 8 hours. The bagged product is then immediately placed in an ice water slurry until the internal temperature of the product reaches 35.degree.F. after which some, or all of the juices are removed from the bag without disturbing the meat product therein. The meat is further cooked when removed from the bag to be served.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,663,233 discloses a method of tenderizing, curing and cooking a meat product, including beef, wherein several discrete pieces of meat are placed in a container and shaped under pressure to acquire a permanent set, after which the contents are impregnated with a salt base or brine solution. The impregnated product is removed from the mold and placed in a plastic bag which is then replaced in a cooking form or container which is then closed. The closed container is immersed in a vat of water having a temperature of 117.degree.-125.degree.F. until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 117.degree.-125.degree.F., in from 9 to 12 hours, for tenderizing the meat. The container is then heated to 148.degree.-165.degree.F. until the meat product is fully cooked. This patent teaches that "cooking" viz "the coagulation of the protein in the beef, commences at approximately 126.degree.F. and accelerates as the temperature is thereafter raised."
After the tenderizing process has been completed, the water in the cooking vat is raised to a temperature in the range of 150.degree.-165.degree.F. until the internal temperature of the meat product attains a temperature of at least 148.degree.F. In Col. 4, lines 51-54, it is stated: "While the meat may be considered by some to be fully cooked at a temperature less than 148.degree.F. most food and health authorities, including the U.S. Government, require a minimum internal temperature of at least 148.degree.F."
U.S. Pat. No. 3,804,965 discloses a method of roasting meat, and discloses a method of preparing "rare" roast beef. In Col. 2, lines 31-42, it is stated that "the roasting temperature, its uniformity, extent and rate of penetration, has a direct and positive effect on the relative relaxation of meat fibers. There are natural collagenase enzymes in beef, which under 140.degree.F. attack and relax (soften and tenderize) the connective cell fibers, which in turn, also helps retain juice within the cells' walls. The higher the temperature over 140.degree.F., the lower the ability of these collagenase enzymes to tenderize the fibers, and the greater the contraction (and hardness and toughness) of the fibers, and the greater the quantity of juices that will be squeezed out of the meat cells."
In Col. 7, lines 40-52, it is stated: "The cooks who wish their beef rare, use the well-known standard temperature guide of 140.degree.F internal temperature (thermometer-inserted reading) in their attempts to achieve the desired `rareness`. Both the preferences for rareness and the use of the 140.degree. guideline, have firm bases in the known scientific facts that: (1) at the 140.degree.F. line the natural collagenase enzymes are still within a favorable temperature climate to actively attack the tough fibrous connective tissues, while at the same time roasting the meat so it is no longer `raw`; while as the temperature rises above 140.degree. these enzymes become less active; and that (2) rare beef is measurably higher in flavor, juice, and tenderness."
The disclosed method relates to the step of supporting the meat on a flexible web-like hammock which is sufficiently flexible to permit the web to conform to the natural contour of the meat, and of supporting the web within an oven so that the meat is maintained out of contact with surfaces of the oven while the meat product is subjected to roasting by radiant, dry heat.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,759,722 discloses a method of vacuum packaging uncured red meat within a shrinkable plastic film bag from which the air is expelled and heat shrunk onto the meat product. The film-encased meat product is then ready for storage or display.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,232,767 discloses a process of roasting meat to a rare state by subjecting the meat, during the roasting-process, to super-atmospheric pressure to raise the boiling point of the natural juices in the meat from 212.degree.F. to a substantially higher temperature above 225.degree.F, and preferably 274.degree.-280.degree.F. Said temperatures being effected using cooking oils. The outer surface of the meat is browned by maintaining the fat at a temperature, well over 350.degree.F. to produce an air temperature of over 300.degree.F.
In Col. 4, lines 19-37, it is stated that: "Assume that it is desired to cook a 14.5 pound piece of prime rib of beef to a so-called rare state, as evidenced by the attainment at the centermost point in the piece of meat of 140 dg. F. Conventional standards -- require roasting in an ordinary oven for a period of 18-30 minutes per pound, or in other words, for 261-435 mnutes."
The patent teaches that "at these values of temperature and pressure, it has been found that rare cooking of beef combined with thorough surface browning may be achieved in a cooking period of between 5-1/2-7 minutes per pound or, in other words, about one-fourth of the time required in oven roasting."
The meat product is housed within a pressure vessel into which a charge of water is injected for rapidly creating the desired cooking pressure of 310.degree.F. within the chamber.